Tag: #MedalMonday

I have not ran since last November as I have taken this year to build my strength and to take a step back from the competitive running circuit. It has not been an easy thing but I am confident that when it comes time to train I will be ready.

My SIL asked me a couple of months ago if I would like to run a 5k with her as she has gotten a hold of the fitness bug and wanted to do. I said ok as I am never going to turn down a chance to support someone wanting to better themselves.

The race we chose was the Run For Kids Cancer 5K in Ballantyne. The event was cool and there was plenty of stuff for the kids to do.

Soon the race was on and we did good. I ran at my SIL pace and we took our time.

Soon we finished and got some pretty awesome medals. I must say it felt great to once again cross the finish line.

We have not had a medal Monday Monday in a while and I completed my virtual race for August! I have to say this was a fun event and I managed to get the August medal and the medal for completing all three races. So now that this series of races are over I have a lot of great things happening in the fall that I am super excited about. I even got my family involved in some of them.

It has been a hot minute since I posted a Medal Monday so I recently completed my time for the July Disney Virtual Race and wanted to share my medal for the month.

This month I really hopped back on the track and treadmill. I have not really ran this hard since the Charlotte Marathon event last November so it has been since to work my distance back up and to get me ready for the races and competitions I have coming in 2018.

I said a couple of weeks back that I have found a new love for virtual races. They are fun to do and you can do them on your time. There is not crowd of people to fight though so really can go your own pace.

I found out that Disney has its own virtual race series going on this summer. So I checked it out. I mean I love running and I REALLY love Disney so this was a no brainer.

I signed up for the whole entire series and I ran my first one Tuesday to wrap up the month of June’s 5k. I am really excited to have done this race and it features one of my favorite characters and that is Pluto!

Here we are. The past few weeks now I have recap my most favorite races. I have posted a ton of pictures from each race and of course taken pictures of the fronts and backs of all my medals Why the backs? Well one thing that was so cool about those medals was that they connect to make one big huge massive medal.

Completing this series of races last year was a huge accomplishment for me and I take pride in all the hard work I put to my 2016 race season. I am ready to brush off the running shoes soon to get ready for 2018 which is going to be a huge year for me. I am doing my first Triathlon, running the Star Wars Half Marathon in Disney World, and maybe a crossfit competition. 2017 I have taken a break from the race season to focus more on weight training but I will return an maybe in 2019 do the six pack series again.

This week I am talking about the famous Yiasou Greek Festival 5k. This race is part of the six pack series that Run For Your Life sponsors. Its one of the six medals I got last year. The food is as good as the race. It also happens to be the latest 5k in Charlotte.

That morning I found my way to the race with the usual signs of a contestant. I had to pee like I do with all races and like always, you have to wait in line. The lines for the bathroom are always long at these races. I think it is due to the fact that they sell out fast.

After using the bathroom and chilling before the race, it was time to line up and get going.

The race was run and the course was fairly easy. I remember all the cars parked in the street and how some people were running into them as they were trying to pass people.

The race was short but it was a 5k so what do you expect. Once I crossed the finish line I got my medal and had a beer under a tree. I stayed a while and ate some really good greek food before heading home.

If anyone is looking for a simple, flat, and fun 5k in Charlotte then this race is for you. It is nothing fancy but a lot of fun.

This was one of those races that did not end very well for me. We all have these types of races. When we wish we did better or if there was something we could have done differently to prepare. I actually never talked about this race on the blog before but better time then today.

I got my stuff ready the night before like I do with any race. I got up and got dressed and headed to the train station. It was a cold November morning but the closer I got to Uptown the more excited I was getting.

This was my last race of the 2016 season before I took a break. It was my 10th race of the year overall. I was ready to be done before it even started. The truth is that the Charlotte Half Marathon is my favorite course ever. The beautiful neighborhoods of Myers Park, Dillworth, and then the home stretch through South End. It is also challenging with the big hills.

One of the cool things about this race was all the people on the sidelines cheering you on. That was incredible.

I was doing fine. Running at a steady pace. I stopped at the water stations and got some Gatorade. Nothing was going to stop me. I was going to finish this race.

Everything was fine from miles 1 to 11 and then it took a dark turn. When running through South End my legs started to cramp. I never had this happen to me before. It was the most intense pain I have ever experience in my legs. So here I am on mile 12 limping to the finish line.

I made it and I was so glad. It was a good race all things considering. I even got another medal for completing this and the Rocktoberfest Half Marathon but we will talk about that one later.

I love this race as it holds dear to my heart. I did the complete marathon the year before. If you are looking for a fun race in Charlotte in November then sign up for The Charlotte Half Marathon cause it will not disappoint.